Sword & Shield: The Great Journey
by Ben79487
Summary: Two children, Victor Harper and Gloria Canfield, are journeying through the Galar region after a bet with Leon to conquer the Gyms in seven days. But on the way, they encounter sinister forces, and must push through - because their 30,000 bucks are on the line!
1. What's Up With Wooloo?

_**SWORD & SHIELD: THE GREAT JOURNEY**_

_**Round 1**_

_**What's Up With Wooloo?**_

_Postwick_

_June 28_

_SLAM!_

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Gloria ran outside of the house to check on what was making that slamming noise.

A fluffy white ball of fur was slamming against the fence that said in bold red lettering, "DO NOT ENTER." It slammed it, rolled back, and jumped again with a yelp.

"Aw, a cute Wooloo... She'll break through!"

Gloria took the Wooloo in her arms and scratched its ears. It jumped back out and decided to smack the fence again.

"_Hmph. Why is life so hard for me, and my friends keep rejecting me?_" it complained, shaking its fluffy fur. "_Mother, Father, anyone! I can't stand this silence!_"

"_Well..._" Gloria began, but stopped. "_Could you stop slamming for a sec? I don't think you're supposed to go there._"

"_Yawn... fine._"

Suddenly, the door opened, and a boy the same age as Gloria tumbled onto the cobblestone street, nearly bawling her over. He stopped, panting, "Your brother's going to visit town today! _Today!_ He'll be at Wedgehurst! Let's go!"

"_Wedgehurst?_" Gloria stopped. "Wedgehurst? Oh right..."

"We should go there!" Victor added. "Come on! Let's go! Last one there is run over by a Rapidash!" He took off.

"Better not be late for that," Gloria said. "_See you later, Wooloo._"

_Route 1_

With a hop, skip, and a jump, Victor sped out of her sight, his form brushing along the rare leafy tree in the plain path that was Route 1. While Gloria preferred to be slow and steady, Victor always sped off on random adventures, which Gloria resented.

However, she did not want to be run over by a Rapidash, so she followed Victor.

When she arrived in Wedgehurst, the meeting (if you could call it that, it was closer to a rally) was almost over. Leon said his words, and finished with "Little sis! You're finally here!"

He tackle-hugged Gloria.

You know when your big brother makes a show of you and you feel embarrassed? Well, this was what Gloria was feeling right now. Did Leon _not_ have to show his caring affection for her in front of all these people?

Embarrassing as it may be, Gloria followed Leon to their house, for he had something to show them.

_Postwick_

Leon took three Poke Balls and released three Pokemon. After a while, they intermingled with each other. The green one went up to a tree and started chewing on an Aspear Berry, the blue one dove in the water and started splashing, and the red one ran around the paved court. They each went their own way, until Leon introduced them.

"The Grass-type Pokemon, Grookey!"

"The Fire-type Pokemon, Scorbunny!"

"And the Water-type Pokemon, Sobble!"

"These are the three Pokemon that you will be getting; you will get one each. Hurry up, Victor, Gloria, make your choice!"

Gloria eyed the three Pokemon carefully. Grookey wasn't exactly her type, he was too outgoing, Scorbunny was clearly fit for Victor, and she did not dare disturb that combination, but Sobble could fit her. After all, Sobble was a soulful Pokemon, and she made it her business to care for Pokemon, no matter how dirty, mud-splattered, or feverish they might become.

She crept closer and pointed at Sobble, while Victor picked Scorbunny.

"_Hurry up,_" Sobble cried.

"_I'm coming,_" Gloria answered.

She took the Sobble in her arms, for it was surprisingly light; Gloria and the Sobble immediately bonded with each other, showing a love and affection with which some strong Pokemon Trainers could not even manage.

"_How is it? Name's Sobble, by the way, if I haven't been introduced._"

"_Well, Sobble's too generic, but what would you like?_"

"_Hm? Oh, don't worry about Scorbunny. He's just showing off his kicks._"

"_How, about –– a-ha! Marina, I choose you!_"

The two Trainers lined up and got ready to battle. Leon counted down. "Three, two, one..."

Victor's Scorbunny popped out as Gloria's Sobble got ready for battle.

"Marina, use Pound!"

"Scar, use Tackle!"

The two Pokemon exchanged blows, and they were significantly weakened. However, they were still bursting with energy.

"Marina, use Pound again!"

"Scar, use Growl!"

Scar let out a roar that caused Marina to step back, and Gloria knelt down.

"Marina, one last Pound!"

"Scar, Tackle!"

The two Pokemon fell, exhausted by their displays of strength, and yet neither one less determined than the other to prove themselves to each other. They had found owners, and they were happy and content.

_Postwick_

_June 29  
_

After a homemade dinner specially prepared by their moms, Victor and Gloria went back to their houses for rest, hoping to meet up near the morning. However, when they met up, they saw that the fence that normally blocked off the western portion of the town was smashed through.

"That Wooloo! It was Tackling the fence... it must've made it through!"

Victor raced in, not caring the myths of a legendary Pokemon that resided deep within the forest to the west of town. Gloria, however, was more cautious.

"Wait up, Victor! I'm coming!"

They raced hand in hand to the Slumbering Weald.

_Slumbering Weald_

"Wow, this area sure is foggy, and Scar doesn't seem to like it!" Victor remarked. (Scar was his Scorbunny, by the way.) Scar was busy waving its arms in front of its nose in attempt to clear the thick air out of his nose.

"I know. Marina, however, seems to quite enjoy it, if not for the weird mood in the air that seems to be present..." Gloria said.

"C'mon, we haven't seen the Wooloo. Let's search for it more."

Just then, they heard a high shriek pierce the area, momentarily cutting out the most interesting mood that was present in the air.

Victor turned and said, "C'mon! It's that Wooloo! We have to save it from –– whatever's attacking it!"

They rushed deeper into the slumbering woods, and as they ran ahead, the fog became thicker and thicker, to which it could be adequately be described by the term soup. However, having a sense of danger, they halted in front of a Pokemon – no, two Pokemon, to be exact – and cowered as they roared.

"Look! It's a mad Pokemon! Let's battle it!"

"_Always so headstrong, Victor,_" the Pokemon on the left cried.

Victor took a step back.

"Wait," Gloria said, her voice breaking, "do you hear it too?"

"_You do?_" Victor replied.

"_Yes, I do,_" Gloria responded.

"Woo woo loo loo!" The Wooloo from before barged onto the scene. "_What's going on?_"

"_Quiet,_" Victor said. Then, he turned his attention to the two Pokemon. "_And why are you here? No offense, I promise._"

"_We are here to warn you that a great danger has come._"

"_We are here to warn you that now, no place will be home._"

"_Participate in the Challenge, and together, journey around,_"

"_You two will restore the region, with the things you found!_"

"_Seemed interesting,_" Victor remarked. "_And I know what the Challenge is! It's the Gym Challenge of the Galar region, right?_"

"_You two will have to see for yourself. In the meantime, however..._"

_Slumbering Weald_

"Oh, goodness me! If my little sis and her friend didn't just decide to explore the most dangerous place on earth!" a cheery voice remarked.

"Lee? But you're pants with directions! You'd have gotten lost in this faster than we did!" Gloria remarked, and then let out a loud yawn.

"And where's the Wooloo from earlier?" Victor asked.

"Oh, he's here, at home." Leon pointed towards the edge of the clearing, where Wooloo was bouncing around with his Charizard.

"Lee? But there's a favor I'd like to ask..."

"And what is it?" Leon interrupted.

"Oh! You're just as bad as Victor when it comes to these things! Anyway, could you, perhaps..."

"Endorse us for the Gym Challenge?" Victor butted in, completing her sentence.

"Endorse you? You're just ten years old!" Leon laughed.

"But I know a––"

"I'm not letting you two get into the Challenge. You're just fledgling Trainers, look at you. You'll have to beat your two hundred or so competitors out of the competition to even stand a chance. Even the experts say that no newcomer is going to win this round!"

"I'll show you that we have what it takes! If we get all the Gym Badges in seven days, I'll wager 30,000 PokeDollars on it!"

"You don't even _have_ 1,000 PD! Fine, it's a deal. If you lose and I win, you'll be paying off debts for years to come, and you'll have to explain to Mother why this happened!"

"Galar Region, here I come!"

_Postwick_

_June 30_

After getting a good night's sleep to shake off the events of the previous day, Gloria awoke the next morning with her brother Leon sitting on her bed.

"I'd like to give you a going-away present –– don't tell Victor, he'll be jealous –– but here's the Wooloo we found in the Weald yesterday. I think it really suits you."

With one "Woo woo loo loo!" Gloria took an immediate liking to this Wooloo.

"_Oh, hi there. My name is Gloria. And yours?_"

"_Technically it's Paula, but my friends kept on saying it's too old-fashioned. Won't you?_"

Gloria laughed. "_My name is old-fashioned, too! Maybe we could make a club! Paula's fine._"

"_Let's go!_"

And that would leave Victor wondering where Gloria had somehow obtained her Wooloo from.

**A/N: And that ends the first chapter of my Pokemon Sword and Shield fanfic. If you were wondering, sorry, Hop does not exist in this fic – he'd be relegated to the role of minor character, and it would be much more convenient to leave him out. In the next chapter, _Sunny-Side-Up Scorbunny_, the two fledgling Trainers are going to visit Professor Magnolia, upon other things.**


	2. Sunny-Side-Up Scorbunny

_**SWORD & SHIELD: THE GREAT JOURNEY**_

_**Round 2**_

_**Sunny-Side-Up Scorbunny**_

_Route 2_

_June 30_

Victor sped down the path that was Route 2, where they were scheduled to meet with Professor Magnolia just this morning. He was bouncier than usual, which wasn't saying a lot, since he was naturally bouncy. He ran through the tall grass, anxious to get to the Professor's lab, and yet trying to avoid battles with wild Pokemon and Trainers, his Scar beating up the few wild Pokemon that he ran into.

He failed at both of them. After nearly running headfirst into a Rookidee, which squawked and decided to start attacking him, he ran as fast as he could, hoping to escape the Tiny Bird Pokemon as it chittered in outrage after Scar attacked him with a fast Ember.

Finally he crashed headfirst into the door of the Pokemon Lab, and promptly collapsed in a heap, his Bag spilling open to reveal its contents, which included a purple sparkly _thing_.

"Oh!" a voice exclaimed.

It was an old lady, whose physique made it quite clear that she had been exercising regularly. She had thick glasses and a book in her hand titled _The Origins of Dynamax_.

"Hello there," Victor announced carefully.

"Oh! Let's see, you were Eliza's kid, aha, Victor, right?" she finally said.

"Yes," Victor said.

"Aw, don't worry with that tone," another voice butted in. "You did nothing wrong."

A redhead wheeling a cartful of books walked down the ramp with her Yamper following behind her. She joyfully whistled as she carefully drove the cart towards the bottom floor, squealing to a stop besides him.

The old woman introduced herself as Professor Magnolia, and continued, "Leon has just informed me that you and Gloria will be starting your journeys today, is it not?"

"Yes," Victor answered. "In fact, what I would like to say is –"

Gloria crashed in the room. "Hello, everyone!"

Victor laughed. "That was exactly _not_ what I was going to say." He took a deep breath, and continued. "Since we shall be commencing our journeys today, is there any advice that you would like to give me?"

"What – what's that?" Gloria tripped over the purple star on the ground, having once been in Victor's bag.

"Oh! That just reminds me of what I was saying – Victor, you have a Wishing Star. Gloria, I see you have one too." Gloria absentmindedly touched the chain around her neck. "They contain the power of..."

"Let me guess," Victor cut in. "Food?"

"...Dynamax," she finished.

"Great!" Victor said.

"_Not_ great," Gloria added. "I've read somewhere that Wishing Stars have to be purified in order to grant the wearer the ability to Dynamax their Pokemon, right?"

"Yes. So I'll take them now, and I'll give them to you at – say, 3 P.M. Okay?"

"Okay!" Victor and Gloria gave the Wishing Stars to Professor Magnolia. "Now, how about some lunch? I heard that curry tastes exciting, and there's a restaurant in Wedgehurst that's known for making delicious curry!" Victor said. "See you later!"

"Kids these days," Professor Magnolia said. "They rush off on random adventures, and then come in all bruised and battered… I seriously wonder what this year's Challenge will be, with these speedsters and all..."

_Wedgehurst_

_June 30_

"Yum!" Victor sat up, heaping spoonfuls of curry into his mouth. "BuhhwrezGlwrhia?" he asked, talking to himself. "SheantbeheldhupatProfhezzerMaghnoll – I give up." He'd been constantly texting her on the Rotom Phone ever since he arrived in Wedgehurst, and there had been no response from Gloria.

**Where are u?** he typed into the box. After an eternity spent staring at the screen (for his curry was almost done), the cellphone pinged.

**Coming. Chat w/ M. Got a surprise!**

Victor sat up stiffly. What could the surprise be? Gloria's surprises were always books, books, and more books. She could read her head full of nonsense and be completely awkward when she came out of her room! Victor remembered last year, when she'd given him _A Treatise On Regional Forms_ for his birthday. (He never read it.)

"Whew! Found you, Victor! Took long enough." Gloria marched in, holding a gift box.

"Another one? I thought we were done when Leon gave us our first Pokemon!"

"No," Gloria said. "Come on! Look inside and see!"

"If what's in there is a wild Croagunk then I'm seriously going to kill you!"

Victor reluctantly tore open the wrapping and found himself face-to-face with a red device, which only featured a screen and a power button.

"Go on then! Turn it on!"

_BEEP._

It started up almost instantaneously, putting his Rotom Phone to shame. "So what do I do now?"

Gloria pointed at the marked metal pad on the bottom. "You see this box? Touch your Poke Ball to the box and it will be scanned and registered to your PokeDex."

"Aha – now." He slid the Poke Ball and briefly touched it to the metal pad marked SCAN HERE.

_BEEP. ERROR OCCURRED._

Victor jumped out of his seat. "This thing _talks_ to me!?"

"Oh, don't worry," Gloria said. "You can turn that off if you want."

"But… Okay, slower this time."

He slid the Poke Ball across. It beeped, but no sound came out.

"See, it listens to you!" Gloria commented. "This thing is ingenious! It probably took Macro Cosmos _years_ to develop this stuff..."

"Oh-kay, Gloria. Got you."

Victor whipped out his Rotom Phone and made a reservation for the 5 o'clock train to Motostoke. _Seat 18A and 18B, _Victor thought. _I'll have to remember that._

_RIIIIING!_

"Professor Magnolia" popped on the screen.

"What? Okay, so now? Better get Gloria! Bye!"

Victor turned around and hurriedly spoke. "ProfessorMagnoliacalledandwehavetorushdowntoRoute2–"

Gloria held up her hands. "Whoa, slow down. What were you saying?"

Victor took a deep breath. "Professor Magnolia called and we have to rush down to Route 2 right now! She's got the Dynamax bands ready!"

Gloria sighed. "Already?! Victor, you must be joking!"

_Wedgehurst_

_June 30_

Victor had sped back to Wedgehurst, hoping he was not late for the train he had reserved. It was almost five, and they had just gotten their Dynamax Bands fitted.

He and Gloria pushed their ID cards into the machine, and a second later tickets popped out. They took the tickets and went through the ticket gate.

"Platform 3," Victor read. "Where is Plat – there! Platform 3, to the left!"

Gloria rolled her eyes. Victor could be so useless at times, it was almost comical.

**A/N: Sorry for the late update. BTW, Victor's going to get a Rookidee next chapter (_Stuffed Full With Stufful_).**

**Wow! Three reviews and counting! That's amazing!**

**And I just took a peek at the Bulbapedia page for the _Pokemon Adventures_ chapter of _Sword & Shield_, and turns out it was a flipped personality thing. None of my characters are mechanics, however. :(**


	3. Stuffed Full With Stufful

_**SWORD & SHIELD: THE GREAT JOURNEY**_

_**Round 3**_

_**Stuffed Full With Stufful**_

**A/N: Happy holidays! It's gonna get a wee bit hectic in this chapter, so fasten your seat belts!**

_Inside Of Train_

_June 30_

The wheels emitted a harsh squealing sound as the Galar Regional Railways train began to rapidly decelerate, putting on its brakes, causing many passengers to unexpectedly pitch forward. The cabin in which Victor and Gloria were in was full of quiet questions being asked. Victor turned towards Gloria and whispered, "Why's it doing that?"

Just in time, the announcer came on. "_BZZT! Sorry, we are experiencing problems with the wild Wooloo. We will instead stop at Wild Area Station. __Sorry for the inconvenience. BZZT-BZZRT!"_

Gloria whispered back. "See this red dot right here? That's us. We're right by Dappled Grove! The lake's on our right!"

Victor wasn't paying any attention to Gloria. He thought, _a bad omen for a journey._

_Meetup Spot; Wild Area Station, Inside_

_June 30_

"So, now what do we do?" Victor asked impatiently.

Gloria scrolled through the list of service announcements on her Rotom Phone. "Let's see, um, the 6:30 train and the 8:30 train are all delayed; apparently the Wooloo are a stubborn bunch," she muttered. Turning to Victor, she spoke. "Unfortunately, the opening ceremony is tomorrow at six a.m, so we need to catch a train before that. All of the ones arriving in Motostoke on Sunday are too late for us, and right now the section of track near Dappled Grove and Watchtower Ruins is down, and no alternate tracks are available (they haven't constructed the Giant's Seat bypass track yet), and neither are the other tracks heading to –"

Victor said, frustrated, "Can you provide a short answer?"

Gloria answered, "This means that the GRT is of no use in getting us to Motostoke Stadium on time. Therefore, we must journey through the Wild Area."

_Meetup Spot_

_June 30_

Victor and Gloria sped headfirst out of the station, where they met the professor's assistant, a woman with wild red hair.

"Hi," she said, and then presenting two devices to Victor and Gloria, "here are your Pokemon Box Links. These will help you connect to your Boxes while on the road, without the hassle of stopping by a Pokemon Center every time you need to put a Pokemon in your Boxes. I trust that you both have PSS accounts, yes?"

"Yes," they both replied.

"Put this in your Phone's universal port, and it will download the PSS app. This little attachment is to put your Poke Balls in."

"Okay!" Victor said, and after putting the install drive into the port, raced off.

"So much for doing this together," Gloria said.

_Rolling Fields_

_June 30_

Gloria had not expected the Wild Area to be so _huge_. Dens littered around the place, shooting their characteristic reddish-purple beams into the sky. Lakes littered the area, with Axew's Eye being a solitary island in one. And what amazed her more were the Pokemon.

So many species' habitats were contained in these areas. As she watched, a Wingull soared over a tree, and the Blipbug fled, jumping out of the tree onto the floor. Zigzagoons were chasing each other back and forth, and more Pokemon of every shape, size, and color were wandering about in these plains.

Gloria saw the distant buildings of Motostoke in the distance standing tall among the flatter fields. Giant's Seat loomed in the east, and Dappled Grove spread out in the west.

Amazed by the tranquil beauty of the Wild Area, she took her steps slowly, letting Marina ride on her shoulder and Paula trail behind her. She took the opportunity to scan all of the Pokemon she encountered, even the ones she did not want.

Once, she got dive-bombed by a Wingull (leaving droppings on her hat), but she cheerfully looked up and scanned it as it flew away. Another time, she was surprised by a horde of Zigzagoon, but cheerfully made conversation as they passed by.

It was not until the end that Gloria was in real danger.

_East Lake Axewell_

_June 30_

"Watch out, Gloria!" Victor shouted as they neared the reddish-brown city of Motostoke. The sun was setting towards the west, right of the Watchtower Ruins, and as they watched, night slowly dominated day.

At first, Gloria did not think anything was wrong; on the contrary, her spirits were high, for the grand staircase that led into the city of Motostoke was just in sight. However, as the cries of enraged Pokemon filled the air, it was clear that there was a Pokemon stampede happening. Hundreds of Stufful were slowly marching towards them, trapping them in the isthmus between East Lake Axewell, South Lake Miloch, and Rolling Fields.

"Stuff stuff stuff!" they all echoed.

Victor backed against a tree as the Rookidee and Corvisquire flew away from the rampaging Stufful. They chittered and chirped as they flew away, a tiny black cloud (but a black cloud nonetheless) that flew away towards the setting sun.

The lead Stufful was almost upon Gloria. "_No, stop, stop!_" she yelled. But it was no help. Gloria was pressed against a tree, and out in the open, and not even Marina or Paula could damage enough of the Stufful to make attacking worthwhile.

_North Lake Miloch_

_June 30_

Meanwhile, Victor was having an equally bad time with the Stufful. Having been cornered by the lakeside, he was about to fall in the lake when a squawking, squealing Rookidee tumbled out of the tree.

"_Why didn't you go?_" Victor asked.

The Rookidee chittered impatiently. "_I had a twisted leg, and as such was unable to fly. I begged, pleaded for Mother not to leave me, but she said that in time, I would learn..._"

"_To fly? Maybe – HEEEEELLLLPPPP!_"

Splash.

_East Lake Axewell_

_June 30_

"_HEEEELLLLPPPP!_" Gloria heard Victor scream.

"Marina, Paula, return!" The two Pokemon were mere punching bags to the army of Stufful. Gloria jumped and fought her way to Miloch when…

…there was no one there. All she could hear was the chitters of an angry Rookidee.

"_Hefellinth–"_

"_Slow down, slow down,_" Gloria said. "_Who fell in?_"

"_Him!_"

"_Victor?_"

Leaving the squawking Rookidee aside, Gloria sent out Marina, who promptly dove in the water.

The next few minutes were the most stressful ones so far as Marina remained underwater. Gloria could not physically _do_ anything to help her friend, and she was moping about it.

Suddenly, a large splash was heard, and ripples flew across the lake. Marina had done it! Victor was saved.

"Ach." Victor coughed out water. "I don't feel so good." The Rookidee from earlier was now sitting on Victor's soaked hat.

"I know," Gloria said. "We're almost to Motostoke. Then we'll get you to the Center."

_?_

_June 30_

"Well, at least we made a decent try..." someone said.

"I know, but they just are too strong..." someone else commented.

"If only Miloch was deeper..."

**A/N: *coughs* Well, that's only a taste of things to come. It's kinda obvious that the culprit is –**

_**text removed because it was a spoiler**_

– **but anyway, thanks for reading! In the next chapter, _Cheerful Copperajah I_, it's time for the opening ceremony! Anyway, happy holidays!**


	4. Cheerful Copperajah

_**SWORD & SHIELD: THE GREAT JOURNEY**_

_**Round 4**_

_**Cheerful Copperajah**_

**A/N: 4 weeks!? Or was it 5? Never mind, I'm back again.**

_Motostoke (Budew Drop Inn)_

_July 1, 5:01 AM_

"C'mon! Get out of bed, you sleepy Snorlax!" Victor was shaken awake by Gloria, who was pointing to the clock. "C'mon! It's five already, and the ceremony starts at six!"

"I'm not a Snorlax!" Victor said indignantly. At least, that was what he _thought_ he had said. In reality, it turned into "I'b nob b Snorbax!"

"Get up, then," Gloria said gently. "Breakfast is waiting for you on the counter."

"Let's see, then," Victor sat down at the hotel room table, which was tiny and (in his opinion) too cramped for two people to live in. "We got some official mail yesterday, do you remember?"

"Oh, the forms? I did mine already." Gloria held up a piece of official-looking stationery, with a couple extra pieces of binder paper stapled to it, filled with writing.

"I did mine too! Ha!" Victor pulled out his piece of paper.

"Your handwriting is _atrocious_! I've never seen worse handwriting in my life, and I doubt Arceus has even seen a piece of handwriting like yours!"

"What?!"

"You better go fix that right now! Or else –"

"We'll be late for the opening ceremony? We've got an hour to go, Gloria. We don't need to hurry."

_Motostoke Stadium_

_July 1, 6:30 AM_

The Motostoke Stadium was packed with fans of the Gym Challenge cheering, and others more were watching through their television sets. The pitch was completely empty, except for Chairman Rose, his secretary Oleana, and his Copperajah, which accompanied him in all of his travels and often helped out when it came to getting him out of tough situations. TV helicopters were circling the stadium, and everybody wanted good publicity for this event.

"I know you've been waiting a long time for this, and I have, too!" Rose started. "And it is with great pleasure to announce that the eighty-ninth Galar Gym Challenge is about to begin!"

"And here are the Gym Leaders of the region which we call home!" Chairman Rose's voice boomed from the speakers as the Galarian Gym Challenge Opening Ceremony opened. "Regrettably, one is missing, but here are the nine Gym Leaders who are present!"

"Milo of Turffield, number 831, the fighting farmer!"

A grown man appeared, with a straw hat and a green scarf, who smiled and waved at the crowd.

"Nessa of Hulbury, number 049, the raging wave!"

A woman with black hair in a swimsuit smiled at the camera and walked along.

"Kabu of Motostoke, number 187, the Fire-type veteran!"

A grizzled old man walked up to the limelight and lifted his head, and smiled as he steeled himself for the coming weeks.

"Bea of Stow-on-Side, number 193, the karate prodigy!"

A slightly smaller girl walked beside him, with a bow tie in her hair. She mimed a karate kick, and then waved, her face staying as firm as baked clay.

"Allister of Stow-on-Side, number 291, the friend to Ghost types!"

A short boy with a face mask strolled slowly as he took in the sunlight, trying to remember what this was all about.

"Opal of Ballonlea, number 910, the charming Fairy-type user!"

An old woman walked in, hunched, as the cameras began to intensify. She raised her head and was met with a view of the lights of the stadium.

"Gordie of Circhester, number 188, the hard-rock crusher!"

A man with sunglasses strolled in confidently onto the pitch, holding his head high as his photo was taken and making a thumbs-up.

"Melony of Circhester, number 361, the ice-cold professional!"

A woman wearing all white strode onto the field, with a cute smile. She strode around the field and lifted her head for the cameras in a cutesy pose.

"And last but not least, Raihan of Hammerlocke, number 247, the tamer of dragons!"

A man not barely out of his twenties walked onto the pitch, with his faithful Rotom Phone at his side. He took a quick selfie and smiled to the audience.

"These are the Gym Leaders that belong to the place we call home!" his voice boomed from the speakers. "The two-hundred-and-twenty-seventh Gym Challenge is about to begin!"

Fanfare played on the speakers, and one by one, the 118 challengers began to walk out of the tunnels, marching around the pitch. Their smiles flickered by as the reporters all flocked to watch this event.

Near the end, the last challenger came forth, number 965. They paraded around the pitch, and then one by one filed into the locker room.

_Motostoke (Route 3 exit)_

_July 1, 9:40 AM_

"Ready, set, go!"

A crowd of Gym Challengers sprinted out of Motostoke, their Pokemon following them to Route 3, where their first stop awaited: the city of Turffield, where they would challenge the Gym Leader, Milo, the first one in the sequence that they had to follow.

The line was cut, and a large mass of Gym Challengers raced towards Route 3, where they would head towards the Galar Mine. A large ravine was roped off (an idiot trainer had fallen in there last year) and an area with spiky rocks, as well as a seemingly random patch of tall grass, were also roped off by League officials. They spread out, taking many different paths as they aimed for the mountain in the distance, Victor and Gloria among them.

Victor opened up his Rotom Phone and texted Leon. **So the 7 days started at 6 right?** he entered. Then, after dodging a particularly persistent Sizzlipede, his Rotom Phone started ringing again. **Yes. July 8, 6 AM.**

Victor sighed. Route 3 was really long, and Victor didn't have any time for fun.

_?_

_July 1, ?_

The President of the Macro Cosmos Corporation sat down at his desk, as always. Macro Cosmos seemed to be more interesting these days, but it also had a drawback. He was already mopping up the toxic waste incident at Construction, and the PR aftermath of the Meetup Spot train derailment (it was a miracle that it hadn't been front-page news on the _Motostoke Motor_), but then the Gym Challenge just _had_ to start.

He noted a memo marked "TOP SECRET" and "_URGENT!_" scrawled on the top with a bright red ink. Surely this was something that Project Eternity had sent. Phase One was already in progress, and Phase Two was going to be started next week.

All was well.

**A/N: Hello! Sorry I haven't been posting for a while, a project ate my time. Anyway, there will be no chapter named _Cheerful Copperajah II_, so we will instead proceed to _Going Solo With Solosis_, the next chapter. Sorry about the mix-up! Also, I will create a few OC challengers (like the aforementioned No. 965) but they won't play an important role in the story. Cheers!**


	5. Going Solo With Solosis

_**SWORD & SHIELD: THE GREAT JOURNEY**_

_**Round 5**_

_**Going Solo With Solosis**_

_Galar Mine_

_July 1, 10:03 AM_

Victor and Gloria had made it through the tangled maze of Route 3 and into Galar Mine, where a hive of bustling activity greeted them. Carkol and Machamp were busy carting coal to the freight station, and workers and Pokemon alike dug for ores. The expanses of tunnels were lit by small lanterns, but even so there were dark patches, where the tunnel curved in just a way that the lanterns could not hit the patch.

"Wow, it's so large," Gloria said breathlessly as she stared at thse wide-open pit, where a gently sloping track and a ladder were the only ways inside, and a bridge made out of wood spanned the length of the huge hole.

"I know, right?" As he spoke, Woobat were flying around the bridge, and some Rolycoly and Roggenrola were bouncing around, and a sign above them proclaimed **WELCOME TO MINETOWN**.

"Oh, Minetown! This was one of Galar's most scenic sights, and it's the only one that's underground!" Gloria exclaimed. "You see there, that's Pokemon Road, and Galar Avenue is just down that way..."

"A Pokemon Center?" Victor asked. "I guess it makes sense in hindsight, but isn't it a bit out of place? It's not carved into the rock like all the other buildings are."

Even the hotel was constructed out of a rock pillar, not to mention all the houses. Rails crisscrossed Minetown everywhere, coming out of tunnels, and one bridge even held two tracks. They all merged as they headed towards the right, towards the sign that said **GRR FREIGHT**.

"Wow," Gloria said. "I bet the mines ahead would be good training grounds. They're so teeming with Pokemon. And that's good for the research, too!"

"I know, right?" Victor said. "C'mon. Let's rest them up and head on to Route 4."

_Minetown_

_July 1, 10:30 AM_

"I guess that's our signal to go!" Victor said. The clock chimed ten and a half hours. "Wish there was a train going from Motostoke to Turffield, that way we wouldn't spend too much time travelling!"

"Yep," Gloria said. "I wonder what we'll find over in the other side of Galar Mine. Hopefully not more Roggenrola this time around."

"C'mon! Let's split up and search the mine!" Victor said.

_Galar Mine_

_July 1, 10:34 AM_

Gloria immediately regretted the decision to split. Even though Victor was annoying, he wasn't _that_ annoying, and Gloria actually hadn't become bored of Victor yet. Although Marina was standing up to the Rolycoly and Roggenrola easily (which, as Gloria learned long ago, was because of type matchups) Paula was at a slight disadvantage.

"You can do it!" Gloria said. "_You can do it!_"

"What, exactly?" a voice behind her spoke. "You can do _what_?"

"That's not important." Gloria turned around to face the speaker, who was a smug-looking boy who dressed in all magenta, and evidently always kept a frown on his face. He also had the curliest white hair that Gloria could imagine.

"Hey, _you_," he began. "Name's Bede. You _upstart_ trainers have _no_ hope of _winning_ the Championships. _I_ will be the _worthy_ opponent to _Champion_ Leon. I've been _endorsed _by the _Chairman himself_!"

"Go ahead!" Gloria stood, motioning to the other exit to the cavern.

"Oh, no," Bede said. "_I_ will _crush_ the other Challengers. _They_ do not _deserve_ to challenge the _Champion_!"

"Um..." Gloria pulled out the Poke Ball containing Marina. "Here goes, I guess?"

Bede's first Pokemon exploded out of its Ultra Ball. Gloria immediately whipped out her PokeDex and scanned it.

"Hey! What are_you_doing to _my_ precious _Pokemon_?" Bede said.

"Just scanning it, that's all. You know, gathering info."

"Oh. Well, get on with it!"

Marina Water Pulsed Bede's Gothia, and it retaliated with a Confusion. Both sides repeated those moves, and as the twin attacks hit, Marina staggered back, while the opposing Gothia fell over, her eyes turning into swirls. Seeing Marina's weakened condition, Gloria returned her to her Poke Ball.

Bede sent out his Hatenna, while Gloria sent out Paula.

"Paula! Tackle!" Gloria yelled out. "Hatenna! Confusion!" Bede said, rather coldly. The two attacks hit, and Paula rolled away from the impact while Bede's Hatenna fainted.

"Finally! You've got _guts_ to go _this_ far, but my _treasured_ Solosis will _strike_ you down! It's _been_ with me since I was _five_!"

His Solosis exploded from its Ultra Ball with an angry expression, and proceeded to fire a rather powerful Psybeam. Paula rolled towards Solosis to attempt a tackle, but was bounced away by the green fluid.

Gloria winced.

"Paula! Use Round!"

The song travelled towards Solosis and this time, the green fluid did not deflect the attack. Solosis winced, and as he fired another Psybeam, Paula was struck back, and rolled away.

"_Ow, ow! That hurt..._" Paula moaned. Gloria recalled her. "Go! Marina!"

Marina proceeded to splash water all over Bede's Solosis. He retaliated with a Psybeam, but missed, due to the water currently splashed all over his fluid.

"_Ha!_" Marina exclaimed.

Marina usually wasn't over-the-top, but this time she was. She sprayed water all over Solosis, even spraying it as the Ultra Ball was closing.

"_Marina! _STOP!" Gloria said.

"_Hehehehe..._" Marina said back.

"Well, if _you_ finally _control_ your Pokemon, _I'll _leave." Bede turned and walked away, his face a train wreck of anger and – actually, mostly anger. He walked away, fuming.

_I bet Bede hasn't seen losing very much,_ Gloria thought. _Maybe it was bad to cream his loss like that, to shove it in his face._

_But still, ha!_

There was work to do, and Galar Mine wasn't done yet.

_Route 4_

_July 1, 11:19 AM_

"How warm it is now in the sun!" Gloria remarked. The damp air of Galar Mine was not very comfortable, and now in the warm, dry air in the fields of Route 4, Gloria felt more relaxed.

The city of Turffield, with its large green bowl-shaped stadium, was far in the distance. In between were many wheat fields and a few sheds, probably the farms of the inhabitants of Turffield. Wild Pokemon were frolicking in them, from the Cutiefly and Combee buzzing around, to the Eevee romping around the grass, and some Milcery gathered together next to a Miltank, sloshing around.

This beautiful countryside separated Gloria and Turffield, and now the only thing left to do was to go through.

**A/N: We'll keep Gloria's POV in the next chapter, _Encountering Eevee and Meeting Milcery_, as, well, she has some team-building to do. See you next time!**


End file.
